


Out of Reach

by Control_Room



Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Competition, Cute, Fluff and Humor, Kisses, M/M, Romantic Comedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-24
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-10-15 12:51:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17529062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Control_Room/pseuds/Control_Room
Summary: Henry did not particularly mind being short, but when your co founder is nearly seven feet tall, things get proportionately out of hand.____for @halfusek (using their hen and joe)





	Out of Reach

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Halfus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Halfus/gifts).



Henry was severely distressed, his face red and his hands reaching to the heavens. Joey looked down at him smugly.

 

They maintained the eye contact for a long while before Henry jumped up to try and take the container from his co founder’s hands.

 

He failed, Joey raising the vial ever so slightly, just enough to put it out of his arm’s reach.

 

Henry stamped his foot.

 

“Come on, Drew!” Henry entreated, sticking his hand out for the inkwell. “Just give me the ink!”

 

“Hmm…” Joey pondered for a moment, beginning to lower the bottle before pulling it away from Henry’s grasp once more. “Nope.”

 

“Joey, you insufferable pole!”

 

Joey laughed, raising the ink in his hand right where Henry could not reach it. Henry jumped to try and obtain the container, his grasshopper like skills not aiding him at all in his conquest, Joey simply raising it higher. Henry flushed with the treatment.

 

“You can get it, it’s right here,” Joey singsonged, dangling it above Henry’s head. Henry waited a moment before snapping his hands up to grab the little inkwell, Joey howling with laughter as he missed. Joey sloshed the little container. “You can do better than that, Stein!”

 

Henry scowled, lightly kicking Joey’s ankle in a mini tantrum.

 

“When I asked you to get the inkwell down for me, I was not expecting these complications,” Henry grumbled. Joey rolled his eyes at the short man’s vexation over such a… _little_ thing. “Can’t you just give it to me, Drew?”

 

“Where’s the fun in that?” Joey asked, tossing the ink from one hand to the next. Henry watched him do so, eyeing the black substance. Joey held it above his head again. “I know you’ll be able to do it this time, Henry, try again!”

 

“You’re no fair,” he pouted. Joey smiled at him, trying to hold it back and failing miserably. He picked up Henry’s hand and put the ink container into it, Henry looking at him suspiciously, as though he were about to yank it away. Henry carefully wrapped his stout fingers about it, pulling it from Joey’s fingers. “Thanks. Not really. But thanks.”

 

“You’re welcome!” Joey beamed, eyes closing in his pure self fulfilled happiness. “Of course, it would have been a lot easier if you were on my level.”

 

“Of what?” Henry regretted asking, the grin on Joey’s face broadening.

 

“Of height.”

 

“Confound your height, you’re a giraffe!”

 

“Sounds like someone’s gotten inspiration from Bertie!”

 

Henry sighed, rubbing his face with his hand. He pointed at Joey, still smiling.

 

“I’ll get to your level sooner or later, Joey,” he vaguely threatened.

 

“Hey, I’ve always said to dream big,” Joey shrugged. Henry inhaled, rolling his eyes. “Good luck with this one, though.”

 

It turned out Henry did not need luck.

 

“Joey! Over here!”

 

Joey froze as he passed through the doorway of Henry’s workspace, backing up slowly.

 

“... Henry?”

 

He looked into the animator’s area.

 

He was not there?

 

Odd… he walked in, leaning over Henry’s desk. Where was the animator?

 

There was a click behind him of metal locking itself in place. He whipped around, seeing Henry on his eye level. His eyes widened in shock before noticing the rickety ladder Henry was standing on.

 

“Hello, Mr. Drew!” he remarked, beaming and proud of himself for his simple but efficient idea. The ladder wobbled, and he wrapped an arm around Joey’s shoulders to steady himself. He grinned at Joey’s still surprised look. “I made it!”

 

“Well…” Joey blinked, looking at his feet and the wooden stalks next to them. “I can’t really argue with this one, can I?”

 

“Not at all,” Henry replied, leaning up to his face. “Or is that a challenge?”

 

 

“Maybe…” Joey bounced on his toes, making Henry (who was holding onto him) wobble on his ladder, holding back a peep of minor terror of falling. “Are you up for one?”

 

“Maybe…” Henry squeaked, the ladder creaking. The answer, in truth, was a hard no, but never let it be said Henry Stein refused a bit of friendly competition. “What’s in it for me?”

 

Joey stared at him, his eyes squinting as he studied him carefully.

 

Honestly, sometimes he could not tell if that man was flirting or that was just his manner of speech and style of expression.

 

Still, in fun and games and banter, it would not hurt to just… “joke around”.

 

“A kiss?” he offered, hoping his blush was not obvious. Henry chuckled. Joey flushed for sure from that, and so, as a precaution, he masked it with a stubborn pout. “I guess it’s not a very good choice. Well, do you have any better ideas?”

 

“No no, a kiss is fine,” Henry laughed again, louder. Joey felt himself dissociate. No way. “I think it’s a great idea. What’s the challenge, again?”

 

“Um….” Joey barely managed to meet his eyes, he was blushing so badly. “Whoever falls first loses? Wait wait, I have a better one, who ever falls on top of the other loses!”

 

“Deal!” Henry grinned, and purposefully yanked himself backwards. Joey scrambled to pull him back in his direction. He laughed, incredulous at their sudden tug of war game over a ladder and a kiss. “Come on, let me win this one, Joey!”

 

“It’s gonna be me!” Joey grinned, eyes sparkling. A crack brought them both out of their bantering games, and they both looked down at the wood of the ladder. “What was… oh.”

 

A large rift was splitting off half of the wooden steps. Joey and Henry slowly lifted their heads up to look back at each other, Joey nervously laughing. Henry joined him in anxious mirth. Another sound of wood splintering made them tug lightly on each other. Neither was really ready for their little joke to come to a head, both expecting that they would both forfeit after a half hour or so.

 

The ladder snapped, Henry toppling down onto Joey, the tall man being shoved to the floor by the shorter’s mass.

 

Joey’s eyes were shut tight as he waiting for some other calamity to occur, like the ceiling breaking in over them or what not. Instead, he got Henry’s soft chuckles.

 

The blue eyed man was looking at him with amusement on his chest.

 

“You look like you’re about to face the apocalypse,” he commented merrily. Joey muttered something about murphy’s law. Henry laughed again and shook his head. “Murphy’s law, shmurphy’s law, it doesn’t matter. What matters now is you get your prize.”

 

Joey melted as he stared at the man that _must be joking_ , a smile inching onto his lips.

 

“You’re really going to hold onto that?” he chuckled, wishing he would, knowing he would not. “A kiss to the wi-”

 

Joey found out Henry was not joking.


End file.
